“Magnetic” Cows Sense Earth’s Magnetic Lines

Posted by Alex in Animal, Science & Tech on August 26, 2008 at 2:29 pm


Here’s something that man, in thousands of years of farming and animal husbandry, has never noticed before - but thanks to Google Earth - now know: cows tend to face in the north-south direction of the Earth’s magnetic lines!

Wind and time of day did not offer better explanations for why 8,510 cattle in 308 locations around the world would mostly face north-south. Shadows suggested that many of the images were taken on cloudless, sunny days, so Begall’s group also factored in direct ground observations of cattle herds.

A strong wind or sunlight on a cold day have typically proved more the "exceptions to the rule" that might cause large animals to face away from magnetic north-south. [...]

Both cattle and deer faced a more magnetic north-south direction rather than geographic north-south, (Earth’s magnetic poles do not line up perfectly with the North and South Poles).

Link

(Photo: Hynek Burda)



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COMMENT

7 comments to "“Magnetic” Cows Sense Earth’s Magnetic Lines"

  1. gt
    August 26th, 2008 at 3:07 pm

    the zen masters say we have lost touch with the universe, but the cows, untroubled by intelligence and its trappings, meditating on their cud, feel the flow… may the force be with you, Bessy

  2. Jimbo
    August 26th, 2008 at 3:49 pm

    I’m not sure this is in fact true. I asked a cow is she knew where north was and see just said “Moo”.

    So I no longer talk to cows. :)

  3. Neatoramawontsendmeapassword
    August 26th, 2008 at 4:17 pm

    That’s just weird.

  4. Neatoramawontsendmeapassword
    August 26th, 2008 at 4:18 pm

    LOL… now I’m having visions of someone rigging up a “cow compass”.

  5. avraamov
    August 26th, 2008 at 5:47 pm

    does that mean the southern hemisphere has more methane?

  6. aidee
    August 27th, 2008 at 8:41 am

    Or another reason is that orientating north-south can maximise solar radiation on their bodies i.e. east-west transverse of the sun!

  7. Cat
    August 27th, 2008 at 12:11 pm

    I am sure farmers noticed how cows stand, as I’ve read live stock behavior has helped farmers predict weather and such throughout history. The main article even says that certain weather does effect the direction of cows, and clear weather is the best time to see them ‘aligned’.

    Maybe cows have direction-preference like people have hand-preferences…right handed people tend to prefer to go right (instead of left) in a store, something used against us in retail.

    Or maybe they are herd animals, and it is a long-standing tradition for cows to stand in such ‘alignment’ on clear days. hahaha


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